District Seeks Public Input in Possible Boundary Adjustments Through Phone Survey

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In preparation to utilize the additional space being constructed at some schools in the 2018 bond program, a boundary adjustment process will begin soon. The boundary adjustment process is estimated to take about eight months, with revised boundaries potentially taking effect in the 2019-20 school year.

Boundary adjustments may be needed in every high school feeder system to varying degrees; however, the process will not re-boundary the entire district. The McKay High School feeder progression is currently the most crowded and so is predicted to see proportionally more adjustments to relieve the overcrowding and balance enrollment. By comparison, the McNary High School and West Salem High School systems may see smaller adjustments to balance enrollments within the school progressions, but changes to the West and McNary high school boundaries are not expected.

Public input is important to the boundary adjustment process. The first round of public input will begin August 6, 2018, through a phone survey of 350 parents of students at all grade levels.

The administration of the phone survey will reflect the application of the district’s Equity Lens, which considers the impact of potential boundary adjustments on all students. For this reason, the survey will reach parents in proportion to their potential to be affected by a boundary change. In other words, more parents will be contacted in crowded feeder systems such as McKay’s, and fewer parents contacted in systems where fewer boundary shifts are needed.

Critical Data Strategies, a market analysis firm contracted with FLO Analytics, the district’s boundary process facilitator, will be calling a sample of parents from Salem and Keizer between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. on weekdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturdays, and noon to 7 p.m. on Sundays. The survey will be conducted in English and Spanish.

The phone survey is seven questions long and is estimated to take about six to eight minutes; however, conversations can be longer when or if the respondent would like to share more detailed responses.

Additional public input will be requested in the fall during boundary open house events. A Boundary Review Task Force will also be formed to review draft boundary adjustment proposals and present a recommendation to the School Board.